Reviews & Analysis

Cells that have been artificially reprogrammed into states similar to embryonic stem cells — known as induced pluripotent stem cells — can bear a memory of their previous history. An innovative method that incorporates a step mimicking early development yields pluripotent cells that more closely resemble those in embryos, both on a molecular and functional level.

Local human-derived stressors combine with global ocean warming to threaten coral-reef persistence. Simultaneous reduction of human-derived stressors that originate on land, such as coastal run-off, and sea-based stressors, such as fishing pressure, resulted in greater coral-reef persistence before, during and after severe heat stress than did reduction of either alone.

Analysis of immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 at single-cell resolution reveals marked differences across human populations that are caused by previous infections and genetic variation. Natural selection and past reproduction with Neanderthals contributed to these differing immune responses and disparities in COVID-19 risk.

Sandwich compounds are molecules in which two planar molecular rings sandwich a metal ion ‘filling’ between them. The chemistry of these compounds has been extended by the assembly of nano-rings from 18 identical sandwich-type building blocks.

A telecommunications fibre cable was used to capture signals of seismic activity during a moderate-sized earthquake in California in 2021. The signals revealed sources of high-frequency seismic activity and, together with simulations, suggest that these sources arise from breaks in asperities: patches where friction usually locks two sides of a fault together.

High-quality reference genomes of einkorn wheat, the world’s first domesticated crop, have now been sequenced. The contiguous wheat genome assemblies include gap-free centromeres (parts of the chromosome that are crucial for cell division). The genomes shed light on the evolution of einkorn wheat and provide opportunities for improving wheat and other cereals.

The ordering of magnetic moments in a strongly correlated system depends on the lattice they inhabit, with triangular lattices yielding exotic phases through an effect called geometrical frustration. Experiments demonstrate that ultracold atoms in such lattices show frustration and, surprisingly, display an ordering called ferromagnetism when mobile charges are present.

Genomic analyses of individuals living with HIV-1 revealed a region in chromosome 1 that is associated with reduced viral loads specifically in populations with African ancestry. This could point to much-needed therapeutic targets to address the global public-health crisis caused by HIV-1.

Reconstructions of past temperatures often portray the extended warm period known as the Medieval Climate Anomaly (ad 950–1250) as warmer than the current period. However, a set of wood-anatomy measurements from tree rings shows that the North European climate is much warmer today than it was during that time, underscoring the role of anthropogenic climate change in the region’s temperature variability.

The performance of next-generation batteries is closely linked to the shape of deposits of metallic lithium that form during charging. Experiments in ultrafast-charging batteries have now revealed that lithium intrinsically forms geometrically perfect 12-face polyhedra, independently of various factors that were long thought to affect the shape of lithium deposits.

To cause tuberculosis, the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis must obtain nutrients from host cells. This is facilitated at least in part by protein complexes known as transporters. The structure of one such transporter reveals how its constituent subunits assemble into a large complex that enables lipids to be transported into the bacterium.

Axolotls — aquatic salamanders with an exceptional regenerative ability — rapidly increase their production of proteins in response to wounds. An axolotl-specific evolutionary divergence in a key protein called mTOR might drive this protein response and thus the regenerative potential of these amphibians, with possible implications for improving healing in mammals.

Starvation causes levels of stress hormones called glucocorticoids to rise in the blood. The surge is driven by neuronal cells that produce a peptide called AgRP. These neurons do not excite glucocorticoid-regulating neurons directly, but instead silence neurons that usually constrain the activity of the body’s stress-response system.

Ancient DNA has enabled the reconstruction of two large genetic ‘family trees’ from a 6,700-year-old Neolithic burial site in France called Gurgy ‘Les Noisats’. The DNA data combined with other lines of evidence offer insights into biological relationships within the site and across a broader social and cultural context.

A common genetic variant of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) complex, a family of genes involved in the immune response, is associated with an absence of symptoms during SARS-CoV-2 infection. Previous exposure to cold viruses seems to confer this immunity.

Protein sequences vary widely in their folding stabilities (the energetic favourability of folded compared with unfolded conformations), and protein alterations that affect stability have profound effects on evolution, health and disease, and biotechnological applications. An innovative method has made it possible to measure these stabilities on a massive scale, revealing evolutionary trends and opening up possibilities for machine learning.

How the protein p53 suppresses lung cancer, the most common cause of cancer deaths worldwide, has remained unclear. It has been found that p53 impedes the development of lung cancer by promoting a highly specific cell-differentiation program that is characteristic of normal tissue regeneration after an injury.

Samples from the surface of Jezero Crater on Mars have been analysed by the SHERLOC instrument aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover. Signatures from these samples are consistent with the presence of organic molecules and, together with earlier measurements, could constitute the first in situ detection of organic molecules on another planet.

Extensive fieldwork reveals that island plants have similar functions to plants in other regions of the world, but that the island environment, along with biogeographical and evolutionary processes, filters the life-history characteristics and strategies of the plants, rendering the island flora functionally and ecologically distinct from others.

Retrotransposons are sequences of DNA in animal genomes that can replicate and reinsert themselves back into the genome. Experiments in flies and other model systems reveal that retrotransposons ‘hijack’ a DNA-repair pathway in host cells to produce circular DNA, enabling their replication and subsequent reinsertion into the genome.